"For those of you who may have queasiness or uneasiness about viewing these types of photographs ... I'd ask you to leave ... If you cannot control your emotions, now would be a good time to exit," said Judge Belvin Perry, Jr., giving a "fair warning" to the people of the courtroom about the graphic content of the photographs portraying Caylee Marie Anthony's skeletal remains, at the State vs. Casey Anthony trial, on Thursday. The victim's grandparents, George and Cindy Anthony left the courthouse.
The gruesome photographs showed what is left of the 2-year-old little girl, a skull and bones with a hair mat that had vegetation grown into it. The toddler was allegedly murdered in the first degree by her mother, Casey, then disposed in the woods on Suburban Dr. in Orlando, where she decomposed. If the 25-year-old is convicted, she could potentially be facing a life sentence.
At the scene of the crime, items found by investigators included a black garbage bag, a canvas bag, as well as a Walt Disney store bag and Winnie the Pooh blanket. Fabric from the child's clothing were found such as, size 24 plaid shorts, 3T tag attached to the hem and the remainder of a once-pink shirt that said "Big Trouble" is now nothing but the letters, all of which no color have their colors in tact, but rather entail dirt and tears.
Casey kept her head down, her eyes shut, and her hands covering her mouth as the photographs were revealed to the jury, as well as the rest of the courtroom. The defense counsel covered the computer screens placed on their desks to shield the defendant from seeing them.
Chief deputy and medical examiner for Orange County, Gary Utz, described how he received the body parts in a few different bags; one containing the small bones and fabric, another with the skull with hair, along with the duct tape that enclosed the toddler's mouth; he also characterized the detailed pictures to the jury, saying "leaves and sticks obscuring the skull," and the roots of plants that grew in the hair.
He also added, "The hair here is covering the orbits, or the eye sockets."
Casey cried and was breathing heavily as the doctor stated all the information surrounding the photo.
At about 3:30 p.m., an hour and a half prior to the regular ending hour of the day, Judge Perry dismissed the jury because of certain circumstances and called for an early recess. He stated, "Miss Anthony is ill."
Susan Constantine, a body language expert as seen on CNN among many other networks, said Casey experienced a panic attack.
"When she heard more about the skull, then she started to break down," Constantine said. "What I saw in her was inconsistent with sadness because with sadness your eyes become defocused and your eye will drop down ... What I saw was fear and worry, which I think triggered the panic."
Constantine said the signs of anxiety were evident in her fluctuated breathing and difficulty breathing, but her tears were not tears for her deceased daughter, but are actually tears for herself.
"She was scared about the fact that this stuff is now out there and the jury is going to see it," Constantine explained. "She didn't want to look at it. She was avoiding it, of course, because it could be for many reasons. One, she doesn't want to look at it. Number two, when she looked at it, she didn't have the appropriate response."
The expert stated Casey broke down, hardly able to hold her head up, but never is she seen "weeping hysterically," but actually, "We see the little crocodile tears, which tell me the emotion that she's feeling is not deep, it's surface. The emotion is not coming from the appropriate emotion she should feel. The tears are coming from a different place ... It isn't coming from how she feels about Caylee, missing Caylee, wanting Caylee back. It's more about fear and worry about herself and what's about to happen to herself because now the jury is seeing all this information, they're seeing the photographs."
Constantine concluded, "Its not about Caylee, it's about her."
(Photography by Joe Burbank, Orlando Sentinel)
The gruesome photographs showed what is left of the 2-year-old little girl, a skull and bones with a hair mat that had vegetation grown into it. The toddler was allegedly murdered in the first degree by her mother, Casey, then disposed in the woods on Suburban Dr. in Orlando, where she decomposed. If the 25-year-old is convicted, she could potentially be facing a life sentence.
At the scene of the crime, items found by investigators included a black garbage bag, a canvas bag, as well as a Walt Disney store bag and Winnie the Pooh blanket. Fabric from the child's clothing were found such as, size 24 plaid shorts, 3T tag attached to the hem and the remainder of a once-pink shirt that said "Big Trouble" is now nothing but the letters, all of which no color have their colors in tact, but rather entail dirt and tears.
Casey kept her head down, her eyes shut, and her hands covering her mouth as the photographs were revealed to the jury, as well as the rest of the courtroom. The defense counsel covered the computer screens placed on their desks to shield the defendant from seeing them.
Chief deputy and medical examiner for Orange County, Gary Utz, described how he received the body parts in a few different bags; one containing the small bones and fabric, another with the skull with hair, along with the duct tape that enclosed the toddler's mouth; he also characterized the detailed pictures to the jury, saying "leaves and sticks obscuring the skull," and the roots of plants that grew in the hair.
He also added, "The hair here is covering the orbits, or the eye sockets."
Casey cried and was breathing heavily as the doctor stated all the information surrounding the photo.
At about 3:30 p.m., an hour and a half prior to the regular ending hour of the day, Judge Perry dismissed the jury because of certain circumstances and called for an early recess. He stated, "Miss Anthony is ill."
Susan Constantine, a body language expert as seen on CNN among many other networks, said Casey experienced a panic attack.
"When she heard more about the skull, then she started to break down," Constantine said. "What I saw in her was inconsistent with sadness because with sadness your eyes become defocused and your eye will drop down ... What I saw was fear and worry, which I think triggered the panic."
Constantine said the signs of anxiety were evident in her fluctuated breathing and difficulty breathing, but her tears were not tears for her deceased daughter, but are actually tears for herself.
"She was scared about the fact that this stuff is now out there and the jury is going to see it," Constantine explained. "She didn't want to look at it. She was avoiding it, of course, because it could be for many reasons. One, she doesn't want to look at it. Number two, when she looked at it, she didn't have the appropriate response."
The expert stated Casey broke down, hardly able to hold her head up, but never is she seen "weeping hysterically," but actually, "We see the little crocodile tears, which tell me the emotion that she's feeling is not deep, it's surface. The emotion is not coming from the appropriate emotion she should feel. The tears are coming from a different place ... It isn't coming from how she feels about Caylee, missing Caylee, wanting Caylee back. It's more about fear and worry about herself and what's about to happen to herself because now the jury is seeing all this information, they're seeing the photographs."
Constantine concluded, "Its not about Caylee, it's about her."
(Photography by Joe Burbank, Orlando Sentinel)
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